Prevention of Fox Tuberculosis and White Muscle Disease
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Prevention of Fox Tuberculosis:
Due to damp livestock sheds, long-term exposure to moisture can easily cause arthritis in raccoon dogs and foxes. Affected animals may drag their hind legs on the ground, and sometimes they cannot stand on all four legs. The characteristic symptoms include dry skeletal muscles, pale or whitish muscles, muscle atrophy, dry and rough heart muscles with necrotic foci. The medical term for this condition is "white muscle disease," commonly referred to as paralysis. Acute cases of white muscle disease in raccoon dogs and foxes develop rapidly, often leading to dragging both legs overnight with no visible signs of illness externally while still eating normally. At this point, supplementing selenium is too late and treatment results are poor, eventually leading to death after a few days. Some cases present chronically, showing lethargy before the onset of the disease, followed by inability to stand on two or all four legs, loss of appetite, and eventual death. Young animals aged 3-5 months are more susceptible, while adult animals are less likely to be affected. Tuberculosis is a chronic infectious disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis, resulting in caseous or calcified nodules in internal organs. It primarily spreads through respiratory and digestive routes. Infected animal meat feed and secretions from diseased foxes are important sources of infection. Clinically, most diseased foxes show disheveled fur, coughing, reduced movement, difficulty breathing, diarrhea, constipation, abdominal swelling, and ascites. When substantial organs (liver, kidneys, etc.) are affected, there are often no obvious symptoms.
Prevention and Treatment Methods:
1. Strictly control the quality of feed. Do not feed raw meat from tuberculosis-infected animals.
2. Milk containing Mycobacterium tuberculosis must be pasteurized or boiled before feeding. Conduct tuberculin testing before slaughter, eliminate those with positive suspicious reactions, and retain healthy young foxes for breeding.
3. Isoniazid treatment. Administer 10 mg per kilogram of body weight daily. Three courses of treatment are required: one course each month between January and February, June and July, and September and October. Each course lasts 45 days, which can allow foxes to survive until the skinning period.
4. Isolate diseased foxes until the skinning period. Use a blowtorch with 2% hot caustic soda solution to disinfect cages where diseased foxes have stayed. Disinfect the ground with bleaching powder.
5. People who have had tuberculosis should not raise healthy foxes.
Prevention of Fox Pulmonary White Muscle Disease:
For young and adult raccoon dogs and foxes, add 1 ml of sodium nitrite vitamin E to their feed once a month. Special Note: Ensure thorough mixing to avoid uneven distribution. Overconsumption of sodium nitrite vitamin E can lead to poisoning in raccoon dogs and foxes. After separating young animals into individual pens, administer 2 ml of sodium nitrite vitamin E injection per animal. Adult animals receive injections twice a year, in spring and autumn, with a dosage of 2 ml. For potentially or already diseased raccoon dogs and foxes, besides administering sodium nitrite vitamin E injections, it is also necessary to improve feed quality and provide careful care.
Precautions for the Prevention and Treatment of White Muscle Disease:
Both young and adult animals need prevention, especially young ones. The prevention of white muscle disease applies to foxes, raccoon dogs, minks, pigs, cattle, sheep, chickens, ducks, and geese. The dosage of medication should not be excessive because selenium is a trace element with high toxicity. The required amount for animals and the lethal dose are quite close. An appropriate amount can treat and prevent diseases, but an overdose can lead to animal death, so the dosage must be strictly controlled.
Whether feeding self-formulated feed or factory-made complete feed, selenium supplementation is necessary. During the treatment of diseased raccoon dogs and foxes, appropriately add vitamin E, providing one capsule of human vitamin E daily.